Wireless local area networks are being deployed in large-scale service areas using mesh networking. Mesh networking can utilize mesh access points (MAPs) that communicate with each other over one or more wireless hops (using, for example wireless IEEE 802.11 links). The distribution of the mesh access points extends wireless coverage of the WLAN over a larger coverage area for wireless user devices. Each wireless mesh access point (MAP) can provide connectivity for wireless host nodes based on forwarding received packets to a mesh access point having a wired connection (i.e., a “Roof-top Access Point” (RAP)): the Roof-top Access Point provides wired connectivity to a wired local area network.
Existing wireless link protocols (e.g., IEEE 802.11e) typically specify that if a wireless network node does not receive an expected acknowledgment frame within a prescribed interval following wireless transmission of a data frame, the wireless network node must retry transmission of the data frame after waiting a prescribed time interval: this prescribed time interval is determined in Sec. 9.9.1.5 of IEEE 802.11e using a “backoff procedure”. The retried transmission following the backoff procedure can be repeated until a prescribed retry limit is reached.